Paco Prats dies, an essential name in the history of Cuban cinema

September 3, 2020

Paco Prats, National Film Prize 2020, passed away this Wednesday, September 2nd.

Prats is an essential name in the history of Cuban cinema. Beyond directors and actors, if there is a credit that several generations of Cubans will recognize, it is that of this mythical producer.

After graduating in drawing and painting from the San Alejandro Academy of Fine Arts, he began working at Icaic in 1963 as a quality inspector in the Animation Department.

The following year he took the position of Producer. From then on he served as production coordinator and director of the Department. He was also Director of Post-production.

His mark as a producer extends to more than one hundred animated films: The Poet and the Doll (1967), An Adventure of Elpidio Valdés (1974), Elpidio Valdés Against the New York Police (1976), several Filminutes, the short film ¡Viva Papi! (1982), the animated feature Elpidio Valdés Against Dollar and Cannon (1983), El Bohío (1984), ¡Vampires in Havana! (1985), several Quinoscopios, Mafalda (1994), More Vampires in Havana (2002), Estela Cinnamon Grain (Animation Video clip, 2002), Knowing Martí. Hanábana Memories (2002).

He also produced ten episodes of the series For the Curious (2002), Elpidio Valdés Attacks Trancalapuerta (2003), My Gentleman (2003), History of Things: The Computer (2003), Knowing Martí. The Prison (2003), Nené Mischievous (2004), The Little Maroon and the Marquis's Silk (2004), History of Bees: The Journey (2004), Sisters: Knowing Martí (2004), The Little Maroon: The Matungos (2006) and Kukuy, the Güije of the Blue Pond: The Green Almiqui (2006).

About his work, he expressed in an interview with the official site of the ICAIC Animation Studios: "I have worked very hard, I got to produce 22 projects at the same time without them being in the same stage. I remember that I was both in the music recording studio and looking for paint in poor condition to be able to make the cartoons. We made little characters with few resources from the beginning of the Revolution, due to the worsening of the blockade.

"However, I have felt happy making them and I am proud that my name appears associated with approximately 700 films, many of them well-known."